“It’s the kind of job you could do almost forever,” she said. “I’ve been with Ailey for such a long time — since 1968 — and it’s not a matter of ego, but you don’t want to be a fixture. I believe in renewal; I believe in change, I really do.”

Ms. Waters was handpicked by Alvin Ailey himself to run the second company because he “saw it was becoming difficult for Ms. Waters to raise a son while dancing in the main company.”